Travel from Switzerland to Italy

Thank you. I am looking at departing on 25 Apr from Zermatt.

From SBB site, would the trains mention there be those that are the fastest route?

Or would driving and even train + flight be a better option? 

Driving will take you a similar amount of time, and you can’t enjoy the scenery. You’ll also pay a huge one-way fee to drop a rental car in a different country.

Have a look at Zernatt - Visp - Milan, as suggested above. Unfortunately, as far as I can see, the fastest (under 4 hour) connection leaves Zermatt either very early in the morning (0706) or in the afternoon (1306). 

I would probably take the early one, then store your bags in Milan and spend a few hours having lunch before taking a direct train to Venice. However, the later connection still gets you into Venice in time for dinner.

So this year on weekdays there are less trains running than usual due to some unknown maintenance in Italy. Basically you have to leave Zermatt fairly early or after midday (or wait in Brig/Domodossola for the 10am-3pm closure to be over).

Now on 25th April the line between Domodossola and Milan is actually closed the whole day. Trenitalia only scheduled the bare minimum in replacement buses.

Unfortunately the 7:06am connection ralderton mentioned is already full. You'd have to leave Zermatt at 6:06 or in the afternoon.

Alternatively (and here's where my suggestion comes into play) take the slow but stunning Centovalli railway between Domodossola and Locarno.

Here's how it could look like:

- RE Zermatt - Brig Bahnhofplatz 08:06 - 09:32

- enter the station building and get to platform 4

- EC Brig - Domodossola 09:41 - 10:12

- Domodossola - Locarno 10:26 - 12:20

- break, quick lunch

- RE80 Locarno - Milano Centrale 13:22 - 15:17

- Frecciarossa Milano Centrale - Venezia S. Lucia 15:45 - 18:12 13€ mandatory reservation

All trains run hourly-ish.

Feel free to ask anything. Driving isn't a good option at all: no road tunnel through the Alps, car-free Zermatt, Milan traffic jams, 500€+ one-way rental fee, etc.

A flight doesn't make much sense either as you must go all the way to Zurich. It will also cost hundreds or thousands €.

Simply take it slowly, make a break or two, relax and enjoy. No matter what, Zermatt - Venice is a full travel day even in "normal" conditions.

Thank you very much for your advice. As this is our first time travelling to Europe, we are overwhelmed and at a loss when we saw the different trains and passes (Swiss Travel Pass and Eurarail Pass).

Here is our itinerary:

We are thinking of buying a Swiss Travel Card for us to move from Lucerne to Grindelwald to Zermatt. And in Italy, buy the individual train ticket. Would appreciate your advice if this is the right approach and if we should buy the ticket and pass before arrival.

1. When I logged onto SBB, at the price display, am I right to select Full Fare?
2. There are different timing for departure from Zermatt Bahnhof to Venice Mestre:                 (a)  8.06 (RE42) - Direction Fiesch (PI 5)-Arriving at 1730 hours (reservation mandatory)       (b) 8.06 (RE42) - Direction Fiesch (PI 5)-Arriving at 1800 hours (reservation mandatory)       (c) 8.37 (RE41) - Direction VISP (PI 5) - Arriving at 1800hours (reservation mandatory)                == looks like 2nd class has high occupancy but 1st class is ok. I noted there is % from CHF 231.20 . May I know what does this mean?                                                                   (d) 8.37 (RE41) - Direction VISP (PI 5) - Arriving at 1900hours (reservation mandatory)        - May i know the difference between Fiesch and VISP? Which one should I be looking at?     - Does PI 5 means platform 5?

   3. Is it advisable to buy 1st or 2nd class ticket?

Thank you once again for your assistance!

Note that Venezia Mestre is on the mainland while Venezia S. Lucia is on an island (closer to the historic center).

Pl. 5 means platform 5 indeed. Zermatt train station is tiny, you'll find your train easily.

Make a spreadsheet and do the calculations yourself but: the Swiss Travel Pass (8 days) costs the same as a Eurail Pass (10 days). Even when adding the mandatory reservation fees (more in the links below) Eurail seems a good deal for your trip. Once you get the gist of it, it's really convenient too!

Regarding 1st/2nd class: both are fine. You choose 1st class for larger seats and quieter carriages, that's pretty much it. If it is something you value, go for it!

From Zermatt (dead-end) you've got trains down the valley every 30 minutes: one terminates in Visp while the other continues further to Fiesch.

My prefered itinerary is the 8:06am departure, 18:00 in Venezia Mestre/18:12 in Venezia S. Lucia.

Links:

https://www.seat61.com/european-train-travel.htm

https://www.seat61.com/how-to-use-a-eurail-pass.htm

https://www.seat61.com/interrail-and-eurail-reservations.htm

The first price you see is normally the price you pay if you hve the Swiss half fare card, so you need to click on the train you want to travel with to see the different fares that apply.

Thank you very much again. Your advice and the links are very useful. 🙏

I have just purchased the Eurail Global Pass! 😀

(a) Could I find out do I need to book the tickets in advance when I travel within Switzerland like going to Mt titlis or Jungfraujoch or within Italy?

(b) For the travel between Zermatt and Venice, would you pls share the difference between the 2 departing trains at 8.06am? One is arriving at Venice at 1730 hrs and the other one arrives at 1800 hrs. I am puzzled why the 1800 hrs arrival train is preferred over the 1730 hrs arrival train at Venice.

The discount for such tickets is fixed, so no need to buy in advance, which is for the best because you don't want to go up there if the weather is bad.

The first arrival has an extra change and an extra reservation of €10 or €13 per person.